Coin-controlled vending-machine



C. A. GROOM.

COIN CONTROLLED VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION mu) FEB-8,19%.

1 1 9 6, 1 O5 Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

WITNESSES: a [N l/E N TOR I C.A.Gr00m /!5 CIR CLAUD A. GROOM, OF EXCELSIOR SPRINGS, MISSOURI.

COIN-CONTROLLED VENDING=MACHINE Specification of Letters Patent. Patented A d 29 1916 Application filed February 8, 1915. Serial No. 6,743.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLAUD A. GRooM, a citizen of the United States, residing at Excelsior Springs, in the county of Clay and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coin-Controlled Vending-hlachines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to coin controlled vending machines, and my object is to produce a simple, small and efficient vending machine designed particularly for attachment to the backs of the chairs or seats in a theater.

With this object in view, the invention consists in certain novel and peculiar features of construction and combinations of parts as hereinafter described and claimed, and in order that it may be fully understood, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, in which: Figure 1, is a perspective view of a vending machine embodying my invention. Fig. 2, is a vertical section taken on the line IIII of Fig. 1. Fig. 3, is a vertical section taken on the line III-J11 of Fig- 2. Fig. 4, is a section taken on the line IVIV of Fig. 3. Fig. 5, is a detail perspective view of a slide frame forming a part of the machine.

In the said drawing 1 is a rectangular casing provided with a receiving opening 2 and receiving slot 3 in its top, and open at one end. The end wall and side walls of the casing project above the top and terminate in inturned flanges at and 5 respectively, and at the front ends of the inturned portions 5 are upwardly projecting lugs 6, for a purpose which hereinafter appears. The casing is provided with a horizontal partition provided with a discharge opening 7 and a discharge slot 8, said opening and slot being respectively disposed in vertical planes rearward of opening 2 and slot 3, as shown by Fig. 3. The chamber below the partition is divided by an upright partition 9 into a front lower chamber 10 and a rear lower chamber 11, and said partition preferably occupies a vertical plane coincidental with the rear margin of opening 2 and the front margin of opening 7. The chamber 11 is accessibl through a side wall opening 12 and has a downwardly and outwardly sloping bottom 13 which preferably extends beyond the plane of the adjacent side wall of the casing and is provided with guard wall 14,

At the front or open end of the casing a flange 15 projects upwardly from the bottom of the casing and the side walls from the bottom upward to the horizontal partition are provided with inwardly projecting flanges 16 in the same vertical plane as flange 15, these flanges affording substantial bearing surfaces for th detachable door 17 for closing the open or front end of the casing. The door 17 in height exceeds the casing and terminates in an inturned clownwardly opening hook 18 for interlocking engagement with the lugs 6 of the side walls. Near its lower end the door is equipped at its inner side with a lock 19 so that its bolt 20, when in locked position, shall engage the inner side of the flange 15, the lock being provided with a key receiving slot 21 accessible from the outside of the door. The door is also provided nearer one side margin than the other with an arm 22 which projects into the upper chamber of the easing to or beyond the vertical plane of the rear side of slot 3, for a purpose which hereinafter appears.

Fitting slidingly within the upper chamber of the casing and preferably of U-shape in plan view, is a slide frame 23, said frame being preferably of spring metal so that one of its arms tends to spring slightly in ward or toward the other arm, and said arms near their free or front ends are provided with openings 24:, one of the openings having slot extensions 2i at diametrically opposite sides.

25 is a cross bar extending across the slide frame at its front end and capable of being slipped in position through the wall of the slide frame, in which is provided the opening 2st having the slot extensions 24?, and said bar is provided with cylindrical trunnions 26 for turning engagement with said openings 24s, it being obvious that the tendency of one of the arms of the slide frame to spring toward the other guards against aecidental dislocation of bar 25.

The casing is provided with a longitudinal slot 27 in one side wall which registers with but is of greater length than slot extensions 24" of the slide frame, and through said slot 27 the cross bar 25 is inserted, the outer end of the trunnion projecting through said slot 27 being equipped with a head or handle 28 by which the bar 25 may be turned after being inserted in a horizon tal position preliminary to being rev moved. By said handle longitudinal movement is also imparted to the slide frame for a purpose hereinafter explained.

To guard against unauthorized removal of the bar 25, its end most remote from the head or handle 28 fits between a pair of inwardly projecting lugs 29 on the adjacent arm of the slide frame, and said bar when vertical is provided in its lower edge with a notch 30, for a purpose which hereinafter appears. In fitting the bar in position it is held horizontally and slipped through the slot and the adjacent wall or arm of the slide frame until the trunnion adjacent the slotted wall. of the casing is engaged with the opening of the arm of the slide frame in juxtaposed relation to said slotted wall of the casing. The operator then springs the other arm of the slide frame back until the cross bar is vertical and then releases said arm to permit its opening 2 to receive the adjacent trunnion of the cross bar and to cause its lugs 29 to engage opposite sides of the cross bar and thus secure the same in vertical position. must occur while the door is removed from the casing.

Arranged within the upper chamber of the casing upon the horizontal partition and within the slide frame is a slide pocket comprising horizontal arms 81 formed at their front ends with upturned and downturned flanges 32, the upturned flange being engaged by arm 22 to limit the forward sliding movement of the pocket slide and having an upwardly projecting lug 83 capable of passing through notch 30 of the cross bar of the slide frame, it being noticed by reference to Figs. 3 and at that the said cross bar is spaced forwardly of the pocket frame so that a coin dropped through slot 3 into the upper chamber of the casing may stand upon the horizontal partition between said cross bar and the slide pocket, it being also noticed by reference to Figs 2 and at that the arm 22 is so located as not to prevent the coin assuming the position described. The pocket of the pocket slide is preferably cylindrical and of the same diameter as openings 2 and 7 and registers with the firstnamed opening when in normal position, as shown. and at such time is held in its advanced position by a spring 35 through the interposed back wall or end of the slide frame, said spring bearing at its opposite ends against said back wall or end and the rear end or wall of the casing.

36 is a magazine or receptacle for the objects to be vended. It is in the form of an inverted rectangular shaped bottle and preferably will be of glass so that its contents may be discerned, and the neck passage 37 tapers downward to and communicates with the opening 2 when the magazine is fitted upon the casin The bottle This action, of course,

is also provided with an arcuate coin slot 38 which opens out through one side wall and communicates with the coin slot 3 in the top of the casing. The lo ver end of the magazine is provided with outwardly pro jecting flanges 39 of such proportion as to fit under the flanges L and to utilize the latter in retaining it in position, and to secure the magazine in or remove it from position it is slid longitudinally on the top wall of the casing in an obvious manner. After it is secured in position the door 17 is placed in position so that it shall not only engage the casing and lug 6 as hereinbeforc explained but will also preferably bear upon the front flange 39 of the magazine, as shown clearly in Fig. When the magazine is in operative position the pocket of the pocket slide will stand charged with one of the objects 40 to be vended, the same passing from the magazine into the pocket by gravitative action, it being of course obvious that the objects to be vended should be of substantially spherical form and of such size that only one can enter the pocket at a time. To effect the delivery of such an object a person inserts a coin of the proper denomination into slot 38 and it falls through slot 3 upon the horizontal partition of the casing between the pocket slide and the cross bar 25, as hereinbefore explained. Rearward pressure is then applied on the handle 28. This action causes the bar to move the slide frame rearward until the coin bears against the flanges 32 of the pocket slide, after which the latter moves rearwardly under the pressure on the handle until the pocket registers with the discharge opening 7, when such object will drop down into chamber 11 and roll down the inclined bottom 13 until arrested by the guard 14, from which position it can be readily removed. It will be noted that the upper arm 31 of the pocket slide closes opening 2 as the rearward movement occurs and thus forms a temporary bottom for said opening while the pocket slide is in delivering position. Immediately the pressure is removed from the handle the spring which was compressed in the delivery action reacts and returns the slide frame and pocket slide to their initial positions, and as such positions are attained another of the objects drops into the pocket. It will also be apparent that as the pocket is caused to register with opening 7 the coin which moves with the slide frame and slide pocket attains a position over the slot 8, through which it immediately drops into the chamber 10, from which it can only be removed after the door 17 is removed. It has been found in practice that the gravitative tendency of the coin overcomes the frictional pressure thereon of the pocket slide and bar 25 and that it therefore invariably drops through the slot 8.

From the above description it will be apparent that I have produced a coin controlled vending machine which embodies the features of advantage enumerated as desirable and which may be changed in minor particulars without departing from the principle of construction involved or the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

In a. vending machine, a casing having a receiving opening and a receiving slot in its top, a horizontal partition dividing the casing into upper and lower chambers and provided with a discharge opening and a discharge slot, and provided also with an upright partition dividing the lower chamher into a front chamber and a rear chamber at a point between said discharge opening and discharge slot, the casing also having an opening to give access to the said rear lower chamber and having a longitudinal slot a door closing the front end of the casing, a slide within the upper chamber of the casing and provided with a bottomless pocket to receive an object to be vended from the receiving opening, the front end of said slide terminating rearward of the vertical plane of said receiving slot and forward of the plane of said discharge slot, a slide frame in the upper chamber of the casing and provided with a cross bar forward of the vertical plane of said receiving slot and projecting through the said slot of the casing, and adapted when slid rearwardly under pressure applied on its projecting end to impart rearward sliding movement to the slide frame and when a coin is dropped into the casing through said receiving slot, to press such coin against the front end of the pocket slide and move the latter rearwardly until the pocket of the slide registers with the said discharge opening and the coin is disposed above said discharge slot, and a spring for returning the slide frame and slide pocket to initial position immediately the coin drops through said discharge slot into the front lower chamber in combination with a magazine secured in superposed relation to the casing and communicating with the receiving opening of the latter and provided with a coin slot communicating with the receiving slot of the casing.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CLAUD A. GROOM. lVitnesses:

EnNns'r Monsn, GRACE Es'rns.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

